Volumes 11 and 12 cover the period from January 1787 through March 1788 and deal with Jefferson's stay in France, as American Minister there.

This is a rich period of personal correspondence and important documents, revealing, particularly, Jefferson's interest in agriculture and architecture, his extended trade negotiations, his reports on the adoption of the U.S. Constitution, and his skilled efforts to establish friendly relations between Europe and his own nation.

Endorsement:

"The series will illuminate . . . The whole course of our history from the 1769's to the 1820's."--Henry Steele Commager.